The mushroom season has now begun and like every year Ulss 2 Marca trevigiana ensures the control of the edibility of fresh mushrooms collected by private individuals. The checks are free and will continue until the end of the harvest season.
Those interested can access the three district offices, to have the collected mushrooms checked, at the following times:
Treviso: Food Hygiene and Nutrition Service, La Madonnina headquarters in via Castellana 2, every day from Monday to Friday from 12.30 to 13.00. However, it is possible to request an appointment by phone at 0422-323758.
Conegliano: Prevention Technical Office, via Manin, 110 (c / o Osp. De Gironcoli 3rd floor) on Mondays and Fridays from 8.00 to 8.30. However, it is possible to request an appointment by phone at 0438-664431.
Montebelluna: Food Hygiene and Nutrition Service, in via Alighieri n. 12 on Mondays and Wednesdays from 8.00 to 8.30. It is however possible to request an appointment by phone at 0423295514.
The Treviso Ulss provides a control service for the mushrooms collected
The mushrooms to be subjected to mycological control must be: fresh, healthy and in a good state of conservation (not worm-eaten, moldy, fermented, soaked, excessively ripe); whole (not severed or cut, chopped, washed, scraped or in any case without parts essential for recognition); cleaned of soil, leaves and / or other foreign bodies. It should also be remembered that anyone who intends to collect mushrooms must have a collection certificate issued by the competent authorities (eg Mountain Communities, Municipalities, etc.).
It is essential not to trust popular beliefs or empirical methods to evaluate the toxicity of collected mushrooms. The only safe method for identifying edible species is classification based on their characteristics, carried out by specially trained personnel.
Most of the intoxications it is caused by poisonous mushrooms collected by inexperienced people but also from generally edible mushrooms, collected in unsuitable places or cooked in an inappropriate way. It is therefore advisable to subject all freshly picked mushrooms to mycological control before consuming them, in order to be sure that they are edible species.
The ULSS also recalls that all mushrooms should be eaten well cooked, as raw they are poorly digestible, if not toxic. The common “chiodino” (Armillaria mellea), the most collected mushroom in the foothills area, is notoriously toxic when raw and becomes edible when cooked: it therefore requires a pre-boiling of at least 15-20 minutes, the elimination of water, and the subsequent definitive cooking. In the event of symptoms associated with consumption of mushrooms, even if eaten days before, you must go to the emergency room as soon as possible.
The Ministry of Health, in collaboration with the Poison Control Center of the Niguarda Hospital in Milan, has created a booklet entitled: “Mushrooms: a guide to the prevention of poisoning”, which can be consulted at this link which contains useful information for the collection, storage , the consumption and purchase of mushrooms.